Monday, Dec 6, 7:30pm, at the Highland Baptist Activity Center, we will have our Christmas party and vote on next years' committee. Bring a model railroad related gift. Bring your family.
Executive Committee nominees: Ron Kutch, Dave Lamberts, Ron Warner, Margie O'Neil, Bob Anconetani, Homer Morrow, and Garon Cagle, Jr. Brad Jones will be deadwood.
At the February 7 meeting 7:30pm, we will have an auction. So don't get upset if you get something you don't need at the Christmas party. Auctioneers will be Dave Lamberts and Jack Seay. We will be using the same auction methods used at the Narrow Gauge Convention. Be ready to write a short description and minimum bid for each item.
Tues., Dec 21, 7:30pm, Brad Jones' house.
Wings N Things - N scale catalogs, Atlas RS 3/4 in n-scale.
We will setup and run trains at Barcelona Court in late December. Details at the meeting. We won't be setting up at the Science Spectrum this year.
This morning, I spent a couple of hours picking out a fishing rod and reel. I wanted the line to balance the reel, and the rod to be the right size, weight and flex for the bait, reel, line, and type of fishing I would be doing. I finally picked out just the right setup to fit my personality and way of thinking, ultralight, of course.
We all have some things in our lives to try and bring into balance: being a mate, parent, friend, leader, follower, worker, boss, gofer, student, teacher, and many other roles, all at the same time. If you think being a follower or worker is less important than being a leader or boss, then think where they would be without someone to do the hard work for them. Businesses call it "delegating". Clubs call it "finding someone to you can volunteer".
If things get out of balance in any area, all the other areas can suffer. Proper balance is important in our families, clubs, businesses, communities, nation, and yes, even the whole world (although I don't think anyone has that one totally figured out yet). I'll leave you to figure out the proper roles you play in all these areas, since only you can do that for you, and I'll get right on to the topic of balance in designing a model railroad layout.
When envisioning a layout, it helps to keep a balance between two things: 1. attention to detail, and 2. the goal of the layout. Detail includes such things as stable benchwork, trackwork that works, scenery that looks real, proper lighting and sound, etc. To get any of these right, I have to first decide on the goal of the layout, and know how this affects all the details.
Most of us will design layouts for home, so keep in mind what will be interesting and satisfying for as long as I expect the layout to last. Do I need to plan for continous running if it won't be done very often? How often will there be guests, how many, and what will they find interesting?
What amount of lighting control will I need for the visual impact I want to make and the times of day or night I want to simulate? What amount of echo in the room will be acceptable, and what kind of sound system, if any, will be right? How deep can I make the layout for scenic interest without making it difficult to reach the track? What level of detailing can I acheive in my planned space in the amount of time I plan on spending? Of course, I don't need to remind you of shifting political boundaries and budget negotiations.
Sometimes I just daydream about designing a layout room, then the surrounding rooms, the house of my fantasies, the landscaping, the neighborhood, the town I would find interesting to live in. I try to design all this in my mind first. What portion of all this can actually go into my layout? I even think about designing software to facilitate these thought processes (see The Future of Information http://www.sfc.keio.ac.jp/~ted/INFUTscans/INFUTscans.html , by Ted Nelson). So I think big, then small, and try to come up to something do-able that will look real, and fit my personality. I consider this part of model railroading, or just a part of my life, or something to think about while I'm fishing.
Dec
6 - 7:30pm - Meeting - Christmas party
21 - 7:30pm - Executive Committee Meeting
Jan
3 - 7:30pm - Meeting
Feb
7 - 7:30pm - Meeting - auction